Basketball Bulldogs knock off Tennessee, win SEC championship

TAMPA, FL (MSU Media Relations) - There is now no doubt, the Mississippi State men's basketball team is going dancing. The Bulldogs knocked off Tennessee 64-61 to win the Southeastern Conference Tournament championship game Sunday afternoon in St. Pete Times Forum.

The Bulldogs became the fourth team in the history of the SEC Tournament to win four straight games in four straight days to claim the tournament crown. MSU won the conference tournament title for the third time in school history and first time since 2002. The number 13 seed Bulldogs will play will play number four seed Washington State.

Sunday's contest was championship worthy. The score was tied 11 times and the lead changed hands on 15 different occasions.

The Bulldogs sprinted out of the gates, taking a 9-2 lead. UT quickly answered with a 7-0 run of its own. Neither team would have that type of lead the rest of the way. In the closing stages of the first half, Barry Stewart was fouled on a 3-point attempt.

Stewart hit all three free throw attempts for a 34-30 lead. UT forced a 36-36 halftime with Tyler Smith hitting a 3-pointer as the first half clock expired.

The second half featured more rugged, physical defense. The Bulldogs had a stretch where they went more than five minutes without a field goal. The Volunteers had a stretch of nine straight missed shots from the field.

Still, the teams remained close throughout the final half. A pair of Stewart free throws gave the Bulldogs a 46-41 advantage. The Volunteers answered with a 6-0 run. Minutes later, trailing 57-56, MSU took the lead for good on a Phil Turner 3-point basket with 1:31 left.

Turner also made his mark on the defensive end with a key steal with nine seconds left. After the subsequent foul, Turner hit a pair of free throws to seal MSU's sixth straight win, For the contest, the Bulldogs hit 17 of 47 shots from the field (36.2 percent), 7 of 28 shots from 3-point range (25.0 percent) and 23 of 32 shots from the foul line (71.8 percent).

The Volunteers hit 20 of 69 shots from the field (29.0 percent), 8 of 27 shots from 3-point range (29.6 percent) and 13 of 19 shots from the foul line (68.4 percent). UT held a 47-39 rebounding advantage.

The Bulldogs had 10 assists and 17 turnovers, while the Volunteers had 13 assists and 14 turnovers.